Custom Automation Equipment: Risks and Preparations Before the Equipment Enters the Customer’s Factory

A custom automation machine has passed FAT and has been shipped to the customer.

At this point, the equipment is already on its way to the customer’s factory. But there is still an important period that should not be overlooked:

the time between shipment and the equipment entering the customer’s factory.

During this period, the buyer and supplier need to prepare the factory, transportation route, temporary storage area, utilities, personnel, and other site conditions.

If these preparations are not completed before the equipment arrives, the equipment may be delivered to the destination but still be unable to enter the workshop, be positioned correctly, or begin installation and SAT on schedule.

For custom automation equipment procurement, this is a practical delivery risk that is often underestimated.

1. Where Will the Equipment Be Stored When It Arrives?

The first question is simple:

Where will the equipment go after it arrives at the customer’s factory?

The answer should not simply be “the production area.”

The final equipment location needs to consider the factory layout, production flow, material flow, safety requirements, operator access, and maintenance space.

There should also be a temporary storage location if the equipment cannot be installed immediately.

In actual projects, equipment may sometimes be temporarily placed in an open yard or corridor because the installation area is not ready.

This creates additional risks.

If equipment is stored outdoors without adequate protection, rain and humidity can affect electrical components, precision parts, and other sensitive equipment.

Therefore, temporary storage is not just a logistics detail. It is part of the preparation required before equipment enters the factory.

2. Can the Equipment Actually Enter the Factory?

One of the most common problems is that the equipment was designed according to production requirements, but the transportation route into the factory was not sufficiently considered.

For example, equipment may be too high to pass through a factory elevator.

The only option may be lifting the equipment from outside the building.

But lifting can involve the customer, equipment supplier, and lifting contractor at the same time.

The lifting area, equipment weight, lifting method, working time, safety requirements, and internal transportation route all need to be coordinated.

In one actual project situation, protective fencing also had to be removed before the equipment could be lifted into the workshop.

Another common problem is the workshop entrance.

If the equipment cannot pass through the factory door, the customer may have to remove the door or even modify part of the wall.

These are not theoretical risks.

They can directly delay equipment installation and increase project costs.

For this reason, before shipment, the buyer and supplier should confirm the actual transportation route, including:

• Elevator dimensions and load capacity

• Workshop door dimensions

• Internal passage width

• Turning space

• Equipment dimensions

• Packaged dimensions

• Equipment weight

• Lifting requirements

• Internal transportation conditions

The key question is not only:

Can the machine operate?

It is also:

Can the machine physically reach the place where it needs to be installed?

3. Lifting and Transportation Need to Be Prepared Before Arrival

If lifting is required, the work should not start only after the equipment arrives.

The customer, supplier, and lifting company need to agree on the lifting schedule and working conditions in advance.

For example:

• When will the equipment be unloaded?

• Where will the lifting operation take place?

• Is the lifting capacity sufficient?

• Is the lifting route clear?

• Do safety barriers need to be removed?

• Who is responsible for site coordination?

• When can the equipment be moved into the workshop?

If these questions are not answered in advance, the equipment may arrive while the lifting operation is still unprepared.

The result can be waiting time, additional costs, equipment damage, or unnecessary site safety risks.

4. Confirm the Final Position Before the Equipment Arrives

The final equipment position should be confirmed before the machine enters the factory.

This may seem obvious, but changing the position after installation can become expensive.

Once the equipment has been installed and commissioned, moving it may require:

• Equipment relocation

• Re-fixing

• Utility reconnection

• Safety fence adjustment

• Cable and pipe changes

• Recommissioning

A customer changing the equipment location after installation is therefore not simply a matter of moving a machine.

It can turn into additional installation and commissioning work.

The equipment location should therefore be confirmed together with the factory layout, production flow, safety requirements, and maintenance access before the equipment arrives.

5. Check the Floor and Installation Conditions

The factory’s physical conditions also need to be checked before equipment arrival.

One actual project involved equipment being installed on the second floor.

During equipment fixing, drilling for anchor bolts penetrated the floor slab.

The problem was not simply the drilling operation. The underlying issue was that the installation conditions had not been sufficiently verified beforehand.

For equipment installed on an upper floor, the buyer should confirm:

• Floor load capacity

• Equipment weight

• Load distribution

• Fixing method

• Anchor locations

• Floor structure

• Equipment vibration

The production environment may also be important.

If the customer’s product has requirements for temperature, humidity, or cleanliness, these conditions need to be prepared before installation and commissioning.

Noise and vibration should also be considered where they may affect equipment stability or product quality.

A machine that performs correctly at the supplier’s factory may still encounter problems if the customer’s actual site conditions are not suitable.

6. Electricity, Compressed Air and Other Utilities Must Be Ready

Another common problem is that the equipment arrives before the required utilities are available.

For example:

The equipment has arrived, but the electrical supply has not been connected.

Or the compressed air system will not be available until several weeks later.

The supplier’s engineers may already be at the factory, but installation and commissioning cannot continue.

Depending on the machine, the customer may need to prepare:

• Electrical power

• Compressed air

• Oil or hydraulic systems

• Cooling

• Exhaust

• Network connections

• Other process utilities

The important point is not simply whether these utilities have been planned.

They need to be available when the equipment arrives and installation begins.

7. The Right People and Production Materials Must Be Ready

SAT and commissioning also require customer-side personnel.

Depending on the project, the customer may need:

• Project personnel

• Process engineers

• Quality personnel

• Production personnel

• Equipment or maintenance personnel

• Procurement personnel

Without the right people available, equipment testing and acceptance can take much longer.

For example, the supplier may complete a machine adjustment, but the process engineer needs to confirm the process result, while the quality team needs to verify the product.

If these people are not available, the equipment may be ready while the project remains open.

The final product is equally important.

If the customer has not finalized the product, supplier commissioning work may not provide meaningful production validation.

The customer should therefore prepare the final product, materials, fixtures, samples, and relevant production requirements before the supplier arrives for site work.

8. Buyer and Supplier Also Need to Prepare Their People

Site preparation is not limited to the factory itself.

The buyer needs to arrange the supplier’s access to the facility, including:

• Factory entry procedures

• Safety training

• Factory rules

• Required documentation

• Transportation

• Meals

• Accommodation where applicable

For international projects, passport, visa, and travel arrangements may also need to be completed in advance.

At the same time, the supplier needs to arrange the appropriate project, installation, commissioning, and technical personnel.

The timing should be coordinated with:

Customs clearance → Factory arrival → Temporary storage → Internal transportation → Final positioning → Installation preparation

This coordination helps prevent a situation where the equipment has arrived but the people needed to handle it are not ready.

9. Why These Preparations Matter

For the buyer, poor preparation can lead to:

• Equipment waiting at the factory

• Installation delays

• SAT delays

• Production schedule disruptions

• Additional site work

For the supplier, it can lead to:

• Engineers waiting on site

• Longer site stays

• Additional travel and labor costs

• Delayed project closure

• Longer payment cycles

Time is therefore an important cost factor for both sides.

The purpose of preparation is not to add more procedures to the project.

It is to identify problems before the equipment arrives, when they are still relatively easy to solve.

Conclusion

After a custom automation machine passes FAT and is shipped, there is still an important preparation period before the equipment enters the customer’s factory.

The buyer and supplier should confirm the temporary storage area, transportation route, elevator and door dimensions, lifting arrangements, final equipment location, floor conditions, utilities, personnel, production materials, and site access requirements in advance.

The equipment may already be on its way, but the factory must also be ready to receive it.

For custom automation equipment procurement, preparing for equipment entry is an important part of controlling delivery risk before the machine reaches the customer’s factory.

A third-party custom automation equipment procurement and delivery partner can help identify these practical risks in advance, coordinate the necessary information between the buyer and supplier, and reduce avoidable problems before the equipment arrives on site.